


Strangers

by PrettyMessedUpSituation (MarcelinesNightosphere)



Series: Drabbles and Ficlets from Prompts [8]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, First Dance, First Kiss, First Meetings, Prompt Fic, Scheming, Song Lyrics, Weddings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-15
Updated: 2015-08-15
Packaged: 2018-04-14 18:52:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,969
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4575831
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarcelinesNightosphere/pseuds/PrettyMessedUpSituation
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dean makes Sam go to a wedding in his stead where he sees a cute girl and makes the decision to attend the reception on the chance of meeting her - and gets more than he bargains for.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Strangers

**Author's Note:**

> Request prompt from anonymous user:  
> Could you write a fic where Sam and Jess meet for the first time at a wedding and they basically adopt each other as their dates because they don't know anyone and their first dance is to "Someone New" by Hozier?  
>   
> a/n: I haven't ever written Sam/Jess, and I wrote this on the condition that I could have a little leeway with it because of personal preference so forgive me if it deviates from the request a bit.

Sam huffed. “Do I have to do this? I don’t even know anyone there.” He folded a dress shirt neatly and pressed it flat into his bag. He initially started to ball it up and throw it in, but realized that just because he didn’t want to be there didn’t mean he had to look like garbage.

“Stop whining,” his brother said as he sped about the room. “You’ll be fine.” Dean picked up a shirt. He sniffed it, paused, and shrugged before tossing it in with the other clothes in his duffel.

“How did you even get invited to this? I can’t picture anyone who would want you at their wedding.”

“I’ll have you know that I am charismatic and a delight to be around.”

Sam zipped his luggage. “Yeah. An absolute delight. Why can’t you go again?”

Dean stopped shoving an extra pair of boots into his bag. “Because, Sammy, I tragically came down with strep.”

“And this has nothing to do with you sleeping with the bride’s sister?”

Dean smiled. “And the groom’s.”

“So what exactly am I doing?”

“You’re going to show up, give my apologies and best wishes, eat cake, score with a bridesmaid - avoid the maids of honor, trust me - and jet.” Standing there with his bag packed, Sam still didn’t look sold. “Dude. Free food, free booze, hot girls, plus -”  Dean pulled out his wallet, took out a twenty, and shoved it in Sam’s front shirt pocket. “Fun money.” He cinched his duffel and picked it up. “I’ll be back in two days, and you can tell me all about it.”

“Where are you going?” Sam asked as Dean walked out the door.

“Uh, there’s a situation I have to take care of.” In five strides he was at the front door of the apartment.

“Where?” Sam called after him.

“Not...Vegas,” Dean answered as he shut the door.

Frustrated, Sam ran to the window but couldn’t think of anything to shout at him. The engine to the Impala started and Sam barely heard Dean over the rumble as he yelled _Have fun_.

Dean had gotten him into messes before, but this was another monster. Sam looked at his watch. In five hours, the bride would be walking down the aisle. Giving himself time for traffic, Sam had a four hour drive - if he didn’t get lost on his way into the park. He sighed, thought about punching Dean when he got back, snatched the wedding invitation off the dresser, and left.

 

The restroom at the park was surprisingly clean. Sam changed out of his jeans and shirt, remembering to take the money Dean gave him out of the pocket. He emerged from the stall in his dress slacks and button down shirt, dropping his bag in front of the sink where he straightened his tie. Another man walked into the restroom in a hurry, startled to see someone when he rounded the corner.

“Oh, hey. You here for the wedding at Swinging Bridge?” he asked, fixing his tie in the mirror.

“Yeah.” Sam cleared his throat. “Still fifteen minutes, right?”

“Yeah, kickoff is at eleven sharp.”

“It’s close to here, right?”

“Yup. Just down the path, second clearing on the right. Bride or groom?”

“Both?” Sam said, questioning how he was going to explain his presence to anyone.

The man chuckled. “Okay then. See you there.”

 

The walk to the clearing was nice. He’d never been to Yosemite before. A few of the trees’ leaves had turned even in early September and the sound of the wind flowing through the canopy above was soothing. When he arrived in the clearing, Sam found a spot standing in the back. The people looked pretty laid back and friendly, not the uptight crowd he was afraid he’d be running into. Then again, if anyone in this wedding party invited Dean, they couldn’t have been too bad. Sam started to relax as he surveyed the crowd. There were around fifty people, all pretty familiar with each other. He scanned the six women standing in a group at the front next to the minister giggling and talking, trying to figure out which ones were the maids of honor. They all wore lilac dresses and any of them could have been Dean’s type. He thought it best to maybe just avoid all of them. As the groom took his place, a girl standing on the far side of the guests in a wine colored dress turned her head and caught Sam’s attention. Blonde highlights shone in her golden brown hair, and its soft waves blew over her shoulder with the breeze.

“Wow,” Sam whispered.

“I know, she’s so lovely,” a woman next to him said, staring at the bride as she started down the aisle.

"Yeah," Sam said, "she's gorgeous." He didn't take his eyes of the girl in the dark red dress. 

* * *

 

 

Sam stared at the steering wheel debating with himself. He could leave now; his obligation was done. He congratulated the bride and groom on behalf of Dean and drew a mixture of angry and condescending glares from the entire group of women flanking the bride. He didn’t have to go to the reception that night. But there was a chance _she_ would be there. And the way she was chatting up the other people there she obviously knew them, so the likelihood that he might get a chance to say hello was pretty high. After all, he’d always wanted to check out Yosemite. Maybe he could make a weekend of it.

Sam found a place to rent a cabin and gathered some maps with information on some day-hikes. He was pretty impressed with the inside of the cabin, which in some ways was nicer than his and Dean’s apartment. With a small bit of hope that it would be a long night, Sam crashed out on the full sized bed for a few hours.

When he woke up, Sam did his workout routine he had missed that morning while he was arguing with Dean and followed it up with a long shower. Putting his nice clothes back on, Sam worried over himself in the mirror longer than he would ever admit, knowing that if Dean could see him trying to make sure his hair was great and his tie was just right it would result in an unending onslaught of teasing.

The drive to the reception left Sam with a little more time to talk himself out of it. He knew no one. If this girl even gave him the time of day, she may not even be single. If he’d done all this just to see a girl who had a date to this thing he’d feel like an ass. While he was busy coming up with embarrassing scenarios in his head, he’d arrived at the tavern. With a deep breath in and a slow exhale, Sam got out of the car and walked in.

The reserved room was already buzzing with activity. Remaining light from the day streamed in through the westerly windows, setting a warm glow on the scene. Groomsmen were at the bar that wrapped around from the restaurant into the banquet area, making a toast amongst themselves as they patted the groom on the back and downed their shots before returning to their beers. The women were in a corner and at the main table with friends and family all around. Sam ordered a beer and found a seat at the bar close to the kitchen, finding that clinking of dishes and murmur of voices settled his nerves. Two beers in and five minutes until dinner was going to be served, the dark red dress slid onto the seat next to him.

“Two of whatever he’s drinking,” she said to the bartender, sticking a thumb out toward Sam.

“No, I’m -”

“Drinking good beer,” she finished. “And I need to catch up before sitting down to dinner with these strangers.”

“You don’t know anyone either? But you were so…”

“Chatty?” she said, crinkling her nose. “I do really well at small talk.” Her face became animated with a broad smile. “Isn’t this the most adorable tavern? And didn’t you just love the colors of the leaves today? I swear, the leaves changing is just the best part of fall. Lovely time of year for a wedding.”  Her rambling was almost theatrical, but believable. The bartender slid the two mugs in front of her and she took a drink from one. “How was that?” she asked, setting the mug down.

“Amazing,” Sam said. “So you don’t know anyone here?”

She shook her head. “Nope,” she said, turning to face the wedding party, who were taking their seats. “Friend of the third groomsman on the left’s sister and have been set up, unsuccessfully I might add, because he didn’t entirely know the situation as she plus-one’d on his behalf. She was supposed to be here, but bailed on me.”

“So he doesn’t even know you’re supposed to be his date?”

The girl giggled. “Nope. I am here for the free food and drinks.”

Sam laughed quietly to himself. “Boy would you get along with my brother.”

“Yeah? Where’s he?”

“Vegas. Something happened with the sisters of the newlyweds and he had an invitation and asked me to take his place to send his well wishes to the bride and groom who apparently are not aware of this situation,” Sam paused, realizing how ridiculous the whole setup sounded. “I don’t know why I came, actually. I don’t think anyone would have missed him.”

Suddenly she gasped with a realization. “Your brother is not Dean is he?”

Sam’s head fell back. “Yes. My entire life.”

“Oh man, I overheard them talking. The girls are _pissed_ at him. But you don’t seem too bad.”

Sam finished his beer. “I’ve got nothing on my brother in the scandal department.”

“Well that’s disappointing,” she said, raising her eyebrows as she took another drink. “So. Since we are practically anonymous, minus my gushing over fall foliage and your brother’s bedroom antics, what’s our story?”

“What do you mean?”

“Let's start with basics. Every good lie starts with a grain of truth. I’m Jess. I’m a med student at Stanford.”

“Really? I’m a law student at Stanford.”

“No way! Okay that’s even better. Oh, what’s your name?”

“Sam.”

“Okay, Sam.” Her eyes narrowed, plotting. “We’re students at Stanford. Our parents met at an orientation and bonded over stocks and now summer somewhere together.” She leaned over to him and whispered, "In reality, I'm a scholarship student."

"Me too."

"I knew I liked you," she said before continuing. Sam could see the joy in her eyes concocting this backstory. He wasn’t sure where she was going with it, but he was already in. “A month ago I broke up with a horrible man who turned out to be cheating on me, and you just found out your girlfriend was sleeping with someone else, who just happened to be my now ex. But we have never met before, and...well, isn’t it just crazy that we would be invited to the same wedding?” Her voice went up a few octaves and her head tilted to the side, mimicking the way one of the maids of honor was talking.

Sam laughed. “Wow, that is some coincidence.”

Jess stood and took her full mug in her hand. “Not coincidence, Sam. Kismet. Serendipity. The stars have aligned. This was meant to happen.” She held her free hand out to Sam. “Join me for dinner?”

 

The inevitable small talk at the table over dinner ensued. When asked if she was single by someone's relative, Jess regaled the group seated near them with her heartbreaking story, complete with wet eyes and dabbing under her eye with her finger so her mascara wouldn’t run. Sam joined in, saying he recently went through a breakup too - his girlfriend had been sleeping with her yoga instructor.

“Wait,” Jess interrupted, “my ex-boyfriend is a yoga instructor.” Jess deadpanned her addition to the story perfectly. Sam was quietly thrilled, keeping up with her as their stories kept meeting up.

_“Your parents summer at Big Bear Lake? Mine too! Wait, are your parents -”_

_“No way!”_

_“You live in Palo Alto? At Oak Creek? My best friend lives there! I’m over there all the time!”_

_“I had Professor Murphy too! What semester?”_

The guests ate with wide eyes watching the exchange, undeniably entertained and astonished what they were witnessing. After dinner plates were cleared, their audience had ceased pretending not to listen and were leaned on their hands and shaking their heads in disbelief when Jess turned to them with a stunning smile and asked if they could believe any of this and an aunt of someone commented on what a small world it was.

Cake was dished out. The bride danced with her father followed by the couple’s first dance. There were awes and tears for both events. Jess bumped Sam with her hip and he followed her to the bar. They both switched to water and watched the moving event from the background.

“So a med student, huh?”

“Yup. Second year.”

“How have I never seen you?”

“I’m sure we move in different circles. Mine are usually drinking, studying, or passed out in whatever corner they can get a few winks of sleep in.”

Sam nodded. “Yup, same here. I don’t get out much. Spend a lot of time in the library.”

Jess nudged him with her elbow and smiled. “Nerd.”

Before the next song finished, she asked Sam to wait and she went to the lone DJ in the corner, a cousin who had sat near them at dinner, equipped with a laptop and small speakers. Sam watched her. With one leg kicked back behind the other and head tilted slightly, she talked to him for only a quick moment and kissed him on the cheek, to which he blushed noticeably as she turned and practically skipped back to Sam. Holding out her hand like she had before, she grinned and Sam was instantly lost in her exuberance.

“Come on, new friend. I requested a song for us. Dance with me.”

Sam let her pull him up out of his seat, but then he took over as the new song played, spinning her into his chest.

> _Don't take this the wrong way_

“So are you always this good at lying?” Sam asked.

> _You knew who I was with every step that I ran to you_

“Are you?” Jess teased. Her face flushed as her facade fell. “I’m only good at lying when I’m doing some silly thing like this. Around strangers, you know?”

> _Electing strange perfections in any stranger I choose._

“Yeah,” Sam said, looking away for a moment. “I get that." He waited a beat. "Am I a stranger?”

“Nope,” she chirped, pressing closer to him. “You’re my date for the night, Sam.”

“Just for the night?”

“Well. I guess we’ll have to see.” Jess blushed again.

> _Would things be easier if there was a right way?_
> 
> _Honey, there is no right way._

Sam smiled. He loved the way she could drop her act and be herself as if a good portion of the group wasn’t watching them and whispering. Bending down to her ear, he whispered, “Don’t look now, but I think we’re a scandal.

“Wouldn’t be a good night if we weren’t.”

Sam felt a wave of courage wash over him. If he didn’t kiss this girl right now he would regret it. Feeling the eyes of those following their incredible story on him, he lifted her chin with a gentle hand, leaned down and kissed her. She kissed him back and then broke away with a laugh, burying her head into his chest. The music moved around them as they finished their dance.

> _And so I fall in love just a little, oh a little bit every day with someone new_
> 
> _I fall in love just a little, oh a little bit every day with someone new_

* * *

The two walked back to their spot at the bar after the song finished.

Jess pressed the front of her dress with her hands and stood up straight. She cleared her throat. “So, Sam, you headed back tonight?”

“No, I actually have a cabin -”

Jess burst out laughing. “Wait, wait, wait. I’m hinting that I’d like to spend the night with you, and you tell me you have a cabin... _please_ tell me it’s in the woods.”

“Well,” Sam started, scratching the back of his head and trying not to laugh, “I was going to go for a hike tomorrow and kind of hang out before heading back.”

“Sounds great.”

“Wait, what? Really?”

“As long as you have a flushing toilet in your 'rustic cabin', I’m game. Let’s get out of here.” Jess pulled his hand and he stopped her.

“Just a second.” He pulled out the money Dean had given him and started to put it on the bar, but tucked it back in his wallet and pulled out a card. “A bottle of champagne for me and the lady,” he said to the bartender.

“Oooh, big spender. Your stock-portfolio work out in your favor this quarter?”

“Hey, I’m no yoga instructor. I’ve got to win the ladies over in other ways.”

“With free dinner, promises of sweaty hikes in the woods, and a bottle of champagne?"

Sam laughed. “Exactly. As long as my brother’s buying, at least.” He showed her the credit card with Dean’s name on it.

Jess gasped. “Sam! Didn’t you say he went to Vegas?”

“Yeah. Well. Maybe next time he asks me to go to a wedding for him while he skates out, he’ll give me more than twenty bucks for the trip.”

 

 


End file.
